Request for members withdrawal of services action called off

The NIRA presented a series of proposals aimed at addressing a  number of referee concerns. The Referees Committee welcomed these proposals as a  positive starting point for the future development of refereeing in Northern  Ireland and will be meeting in January 2005 to consider these in further  detail.

Mr Raymond Kennedy (IFA Vice President and Chairman of the  Referees Committee) confirmed the Associations total disgust at the increasing  levels of physical and verbal attacks on referees and committed the Association  to find methods to prevent and remove this blight upon the game.

Mr Mark Courtney ( Chairman of the Northern Ireland Referees  Association) welcomed the positive tone of the meeting and confirmed that the  NIRA would not be requesting a withdrawal of services of members on 15th  January, he looked forward to seeing positive outcomes for refereeing from their  discussions.